Liquid lubricant feeding system for tree shaking apparatus



F. L. M EWEN 3,178,875

LIQUID LUBRICANT FEEDING SYSTEM FOR TREE SHAKING APPARATUS April 20, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 26, 1964 INVENTOR. fiederick L. Maia/e22 A ril 20, 1965 MOEW 3,178,875

LIQUID LUBRICANT FEEDING SYSTEM FOR TREE SHAKING APPARATUS Filed May 26, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 3,178,875 LIQUID LUBRICANT FEEDING SYSTEM F011 TREE SHAKING APPARATUS Frederick L. McEwen, 3729 McDonohough Ave, Sanger, Calif. Filed May 26, 1964, Ser. No. 370,188 1 Claim. (Cl. 56-328) This invention relates to power actuated tree limb shaking apparatus, and in particular represents improvements over the liquid lubricant applying mechanism shown in my United States Patent No. 3,123,965. Such apparatus includes a limb engaging grapple unit, and said mechanism is operative to apply a liquid lubricant to the grapple unit and the limb at the point of engagement of the unit with the limb whereby to avoid possible damage to the limb by friction burning or the like.

In the patented structure, however, the closing of the grapple unit about a limb and the feeding of the liquid lubricant to the unit were controlled by separate movements on the part of the operator of the apparatus. This necessitated such movements being accurately coordinated if the desired results were to be efficiently effected, and such coordination was sometimes difiicult to be consistently attained.

It is, therefore, the principal object of the present invention to avoid the above undesirable feature of the previous structure by the provision of means to effect the closing of the grapple unit and the feeding of the lubricant thereto in close sequence by the operation of a single manually actuated handle.

More specifically, such means includes a pair of separate valves, one to control the actuation of the grapple unit closing means and the other to control the feeding of the lubricant to the grapple unit and the tree limb engaged thereby, and a mechanism which includes such single handle to first actuate said other valve and to then, after a slight delay, to actuate the one valve.

A further object of the invention is to provide a liquid lubricant feeding system which is designed for ease and economy of manufacture, and ready installation.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a practical and reliable liquid lubricant feeding system and one which is exceedingly effective for the purpose for which it is designed.

These objects are accomplished by means of such structure and relative arrangement of parts as will fully appear by a perusal of the following specification and claim.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a side outline, partly broken away, of a tree shaking apparatus of the type shown in the aforementioned patent, and equipped with my improved liquid lubricant feeding system.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary enlarged elevation of the apparatus; the view being taken from the side opposite that depicted in FIG. 1, and showing the control valves and their actuating mechanism.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the valve control mechanism taken on line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a diagram of the liquid lubricant feeding system as associated with the control system for the grapple unit.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings and to the characters of reference marked thereon, the tree shaking apparatus to which the improved liquid lubri cant feeding system is applied comprises an elongated upwardly inclined boom 1 mounted at its lower end on a tractor 2. At its upper end, the boom is fitted with an initially open grapple unit indicated generally at 3, and adapted to engage about a limb of the tree to be shaken. As in the structure of the aforementioned patent, one jaw United States Patent F 3,178,375 Patented Apr. 20, 1965 3a of the grapple unit is movable and is operatively connected to the piston rod of a two-way hydraulic cylinder 4 which is suitably mounted on the boom 1.

Opposite end conduits 5 from the cylinder 4 lead to similarly opposed connections on the body 6 of a conventional form of slide-plunger valve 7 as shown in FIG. 4. The body 6 is secured on the outer face of one of the diagonal braces 8 of the boom bracing structure 9 at a point convenient to the driver of the tractor 2. Sup ply and discharge conduits 10 and 11, respectively, extend to the valve body 6 from a suitable and usual source of hydraulic pressure on the tractor 2. The valve 7 projeets from one end of the body 6 and is connected to a hand lever 12 intermediate the ends thereof as at 13; the lower end of the handle being pivoted in connection with the body as at 14. The valve 7 and conduits 5 are arranged so that movement of the lever 12 away from the valve body a certain distance from a neutral position will shift the valve so that pressure is fed to the cylinder 4 to cause movement of jaw 3a whereby the grapple unit 3 may thus be closed about a tree limb.

Lubricant discharge nozzles 15 are mounted on the boom 1 on opposite sides of the grapple unit 3 in position to spray lubricant onto said unit and the limb engaged thereby. A feed conduit 16 extends from the nozzles 15 to a normally closed valve 17; the latter being self-closing and having a depressible actuating stem 18 projecting therefrom and whose depression opens the valve.

A primary feed conduit 19 extends to the valve 17 from a lubricant supply tank 21 mounted on the tractor 2; the desired pressure being maintained in the tank 20 by means of a compressor 21 mounted on the tractor 2 just ahead of the tank 219. The compressor includes a transverse drive shaft 22 which is connected by an endless belt and pulley unit, indicated generally at 23, with the shaker eccentric shaft driven from the usual power take-off shaft of the tractor.

The valve 17 is secured on a bracket 24 fixed in connection with the valve body 6; said valve 17 being so disposed that the projecting stem 18 thereof is some distance beyond one side of the hand lever 12 of valve 7 at substantially right angles to the length thereof and faces the plane of the outer or back edge of the same at a point a somewhat greater distance from the pivot 14 of the hand lever 12 than the connection 13, the stem 18 being parallel to the valve 7.

A separate lever 25 extends transversely of the hand lever 12 between and in engagement both with the back edge of lever 12 and with the outer end of the stem 18; said separate lever 25 being pivoted at its end furthest from the lever 12 on the body of valve 17 some distance beyond the stem 18 as shown at 26 in FIG. 2.

The connection 13 of the hand lever 12 with the valve 7 actually comprises a cross pin 27 secured in said lever 12 and projecting through an elongated hole 28 in said valve 7. This elongation is disposed so that when the valve 7 is in a closed position, the hand lever 12 may be swung-in lost motion relationin a direction away from the valve body 6 and against the transverse lever 25 a sufficient distance to cause the latter to depress the stem 18 of valve 17. The valve 17 is thus opened before movement of the pin 27--as said lever 12 continues to swing about the pivot 14causes said pin to engage against the outer end of the elongated hole 28 and pulls the valve 7 to an open position.

By reason of the above valve operating arrangement, the valve 17 is first opened to cause a spray of the liquid lubricant to be directed against the still open grapple unit 3 and the adjacent portion of the tree limb to be engaged, and then the grapple unit is immediately closed about the limb. Thereafter, the hand lever 12 is swung in the opposite or reverse direction sufliciently to restore the valve 7 to a closed position whichwill, of course, hold the hydraulicpressure in the cylinder 4 and maintain the grapple unit 3 closed about the limb. At the same time, such reverse movement of the hand lever 12 removes the valve opening pressure from the lever 25, andthe valve 17 is allowed to close whereby to stop liquid lubricant to the nozzles 15. V r a a When it is desired to disengage the grapple unit 3 from a limb after a shaking thereof'has been effected, it is only necessary to swing the hand lever 12 further in said opposite direction to place the valve 7 in the position to supply pressure to the Opposite end of the cylinder 4 so as to' openthe grapple unit and free the same from the tree limb.

With the described system, there 'is attained an automatic spraying of the liquid lubricant on the grapple unit and adjacent limb each time such unit is to be closed; the sequencing being such that the spraying of the liquid lubricant immediatelyprecedes closing of said grapple had after the grapple unit is closed; this being accomplished by again swinging the hand lever 12 in a direction away from the valve body 6.

V1 claimed as new and useful and upon which Letters Patent feeding of the isdesired.

In a tree shaking apparatus which includes a grapple 'unit to engage a tree limb and having a movable jaw, and a liquid lubricant spray nozzle mounted in position to directa spray against the grapple unit; fluid pressure actuated power means to move the jaw in a limb engaging direction, said power means including a pressure conduit having a first initially closed valve therein, a liquid lubricant supply conduit leading to the nozzle and having a second initially closed valve therein, the valves being disposed in relatively closely spaced relation, the first valve including a longitudinally movable plunger whose movement in one direction opens said first valve, the second unit. Also, when necessary, a spraying operation can be p Further, since the compressor 21 is functioning as long as the tractor engine is running, the use of a manually operated pump to maintain the lubricant under pressureas was previously the case-is no longer necessary.

From the foregoing description, it will be readily seen that there has been produced such a device as substantially fulfills the objects of the invention, as set forth herein. a

' While this specification sets forthin detail the present and preferred construction of the device, stillin practice v such deviations from such detail may be resorted to as do not form a departure from the spirit of the invention,

as defined by the appended claim.

Having thus described the invention, the following is valve including a depressible stem' whose depression opens said second valve, said' stemrbeing' disposed substantially parallelto thetplunger in oflset relation thereto, a sepa-..

rate lever pivoted at one end on said second valve in crossing'and engaged relation'with the outer end of the stem, a hand lever pivoted at one endin connection with said'firs t valve beyond the plunger and extending radially thereof and past the plunger in crossing relation thereto, said hand lever being rdisposed at right ,angles to Saidseparate lever and the latter engaging the back face of the hand lever intermediate the ends thereof and a lost motion connection between the hand lever and the plunger. [v a V I References Citedby the Examiner V V UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,725,854 12/55 Lear 251- 78 X 3,123,965 13/64 MCEWEII 56-328 7 1 FOREIGN PATENTS 633,052 12/49 Great Britain.

ANTONIO F. GUIDA, Acting Primary Examiner.

RUSSELL R. KINSEY,T. GRAHAM CRAVER,

Examiners. 

